May 12, 2014

Health scientists at the California Pacific Medical Center Research Institution are proposing a new metric by which to measure older people's likelihood of developing a range of medical problems, including lung and vascular diseases, degenerative arthritis, and such neurological ailments as Parkinson's Disease. Their warning sign: "dismobility," which is defined as a slow walking speed, meaning two feet per second or slower. The Center's report, just published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found slow walking in persons over 65 to be a strong predictor of those and other age-related medical conditions. The report also offers an alarming estimate: that by 2040, around 15.5 million Americans aged 65 and over will be unable to walk further than three blocks.

More women are postponing having children until age 35 or older finds a study by the National Center for Health Statistics at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For the study, researchers compiled data over the past four decades. Among their findings: The birth rate for first-time moms, aged 40-44, more than doubled since 1990. There were more than 9 times as many first-time moms age 35+ in 2012 than there were in the 1970s. Researchers say that while older first-time moms typically have higher incomes and more education than younger first-time moms, women who postpone childbirth until after age 35 are more likely to have children with health problems and to experience health problems themselves.

The H1N1 flu vaccine during pregnancy has no adverse effects on infant health during the first year, finds a Dutch study from the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment. The study, presented at the annual meeting of the European Society for Pediatric Infectious Diseases, found that infants of vaccinated and unvaccinated mothers were similar in regards to head circumference and weight and length for their ages. The babies’ developmental scores which assessed speech, language, psychosocial aspects and coarse motor function were also similar. "These findings ... may help the decision making process on maternal immunization in case of a new pandemic and possible other infectious diseases, which can be prevented by this strategy," said researcher Nicoline van der Maas, M.D.